Nancy and I will be signing off for the year 2016 (see our next post), but I wanted to do one last round-up.
1) I was waiting for some data points on new Avianca Vuela credit card, and there is at least one positive development. Grant from Travel With Grant blog reports that he was able to confirm 60K miles’ bonus after inputting code AVSPWE. Read his post for all the details He recommends calling after approval to make sure you’ll get the correct offer.
Getting 60K miles for only $149 is definitely a great deal, but make sure you’ll be able to utilize them in a near future. Avianca program has a reputation for being very difficult to deal with (sort of like me). They also change mileage requirements on a whim. That being said, there are presently some good uses for regular folks in US.
You can redeem Avianca miles on United-operated flights (as long as there is saver space). Flights within Continental US (including Alaska) cost 12,500 miles. That’s pretty good and actually beats pricing to Alaska via United program. You can get to Hawaii for 22,500 miles one-way, which is OK. To my readers who have family in South America, you can fly to countries like Uruguay and Brazil for 30,000 miles one-way via Star Alliance partners like Copa. So, you can potentially get a roundtrip ticket for $149, plus credit pull. Not bad.
2) Chuck at DoC has posted about a report on Saverocity forum where a member saw 50K points’ offer on Citi Thank You Premier card in branch. The annual fee was waived. This is definitely a great deal, so I recommend you consider checking your local Citi branch. Keep in mind, you are eligible if you didn’t have this card (or Citi Prestige) opened or closed within the last 24 months.
3) Cheaper awards via Alaska Mileage Plan by Travel Codex. Overall good news!
4) Speaking of Alaska program, they have announced that soon you’ll be able to convert Virgin America Elevate points to Alaska Mileage Plan miles at 1:1.3 ratio. I think that’s fair considering the fact that both currencies transfer from SPG on 1:1 basis. This will open more opportunities for those with a big stash of Virgin America points due to recent Jet Blue match promo. Before you rush to dump your SPG points to Elevate, and then to Alaska, read my post on all the cool things you can do with Virgin America currency
5) The public link for 50K points on Chase Southwest Plus card is back. Apply here This is the version with $69 annual fee. I have a personal referral link for Premier version ($99 annual fee) if anyone is interested. (hat tip to Dannydealguru)
6) Don’t forget to activate 5% categories on your cards like Chase Freedom and Discover It. Another quarter is nigh.
Click here to view various credit cards and available sign-up bonuses
Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
Thanks for linking to my Avianca CC post. Happy holidays and all the best in 2017 🙂
Grant, thanks for stopping by and for putting together that post! Very helpful. Congrats on all the success with your blog and adding a new team of writers.